Republican congressman Cliff Stearns of Florida is leading the investigation. He says he hopes Chu will provide answers about why the Energy Department, in his words, "consciously ignored the direct warnings from their own experts that Solyndra was doomed to fail."

A spokesman for Chu, Damien LaVera, said Thursday night that Chu intends to highlight what the administration is doing to help American workers and innovators compete in the global clean-energy market.